glib: Add support for GNOME Console

[jtojnar]

Description of changes

GNOME Console (aka King’s Cross) is the default terminal emulator in GNOME 42. Let’s make GLib aware of it so that apps relying on it (e.g. GNOME Shell) can launch terminal apps like htop.

This is a downstream patch since GLib does not want to add any more terminal emulators: https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/glib/-/issues/2618

Things done

• Built on platform(s)
  • x86_64-linux
  • aarch64-linux
  • x86_64-darwin
  • aarch64-darwin
• For non-Linux: Is sandbox = true set in nix.conf? (See Nix manual)
• Tested, as applicable:
  • NixOS test(s) (look inside nixos/tests)
  • and/or package tests
  • or, for functions and "core" functionality, tests in lib/tests or pkgs/test
  • made sure NixOS tests are linked to the relevant packages
• Tested compilation of all packages that depend on this change using nix-shell -p nixpkgs-review --run "nixpkgs-review rev HEAD". Note: all changes have to be committed, also see nixpkgs-review usage
• Tested basic functionality of all binary files (usually in ./result/bin/)
• 22.05 Release Notes (or backporting 21.11 Release notes)
  • (Package updates) Added a release notes entry if the change is major or breaking
  • (Module updates) Added a release notes entry if the change is significant
  • (Module addition) Added a release notes entry if adding a new NixOS module
  • (Release notes changes) Ran nixos/doc/manual/md-to-db.sh to update generated release notes
• Fits CONTRIBUTING.md.

[jtojnar]

While at it, should we also add Pantheon Terminal @bobby285271 @davidak?

[bobby285271]

While at it, should we also add Pantheon Terminal

Personally, this sounds good to me. I think -x should be used when calling io.elementary.terminal.

---

I actually have a very wired question for gnome-console, if I have a ~/.local/share/applications/test.desktop file as:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Version=1.0
Name=Test
GenericName=Test
Comment=Test
Icon=htop
Exec=/home/bobby285271/test.sh --randomarg
Terminal=true
Categories=System;ConsoleOnly;
Keywords=system

And a /home/bobby285271/test.sh executable file as:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
echo "hello"
if [[ "${1}" == "--randomarg" ]]
then
  echo "world"
fi
sleep 10

Can kgx -e handle the --randomarg arg correctly? I expect a terminal window pop up and say hello world.

[jtojnar]

Not sure, still have not rebuilt my system with this patch. I can only say that GNOME Terminal does print both lines when the script is started through the desktop file in GNOME Shell.

---

kgx -e "$PWD/test.sh --randomarg" and xterm -e "$PWD/test.sh --randomarg" need to be invoked like this, while gnome-terminal -- $PWD/test.sh --randomarg. io.elementary.terminal seems to support both formats (-x is synonym to --). kgx and io.elementary.terminal do not seem to close the tab after the command finishes, xterm and gnome-terminal do.

[jtojnar]

Actually, testing using the following shows that the patch is not sufficient as is:

$ env PATH=$(nix-build -A gnome-console)/bin $(nix-build https://github.com/jtojnar/nixpkgs/archive/glib-gnome-console.tar.gz -A glib.bin)/bin/gio launch ~/.local/share/applications/test.desktop
Unknown option --randomarg

[bobby285271]

Not sure, still have not rebuilt my system with this patch.

I am actually testing the change using the "workaround" mentioned in the upstream issue, that is enable environment.localBinInPath, run ln -s /path/to/bin/kgx tilix in ~/.local/bin, create the above files, then gtk-launch test.desktop 🤣 And yeah I am also seeing Unknown option --randomarg.

[jtojnar]

Weirdly, having only xterm on PATH does not even seem to do anything. Not even when I remove the extra argument from the desktop file.

[jtojnar]

Interestingly, Tilix supports both tilix -e test.sh --randomarg and tilix -e "test.sh --randomarg" (I added test.sh on PATH).

Though going through a desktop file, it will work only when another Tilix window is running. Otherwise it will just print some startup warning and briefly open a window (immediately destroying it), and then do nothing.

[jtojnar]

The window closing immediately might have something to do with the PATH, it does the same when running env PATH=(nix-build -A xfce.xfce4-terminal)/bin result/bin/xfce4-terminal -x ~/.local/bin/test.sh --randomarg but not when passing it non-existent program, or running it without PATH modification result/bin/xfce4-terminal -x ~/.local/bin/test.sh --randomarg.

Edit: Turns out I need (nix-build -A bash)/bin:(nix-build -A coreutils)/bin (Bash for shebang, coreutils for sleep).

[jtojnar]

Testing with the following fish script and your desktop file, it seems all tested emulators support argument per argument, only KGX needs the whole command as a single argument.

for termpkg in gnome.gnome-terminal mate.mate-terminal xfce.xfce4-terminal gnome-console tilix libsForQt5.konsole xterm
echo Testing $termpkg
env PATH=(nix-build -A bash)/bin:(nix-build -A coreutils)/bin:(nix-build -A $termpkg)/bin (nix-build https://github.com/jtojnar/nixpkgs/archive/glib-gnome-console.tar.gz -A glib.bin)/bin/gio launch ~/.local/share/applications/test.desktop
read foo --prompt-str="Enter to continue"
end

[jtojnar]

Okay, this seems to work.

[jtojnar]

This can go to staging, since xterm is always available as a fallback.